A’ja Wilson leading early charge for All-Star votes
Derek Hegna
Host · Writer
LAS VEGAS — A’ja Wilson is eyeing an unprecedented fifth MVP award this season, and fans are noticing as the All-Star Game begins to pull into view.
The early stages of the fan vote portion of the All-Star selection has Wilson leading the way with 308,249 votes, putting her 10,000 votes ahead of second-place Dallas Wings guard Paige Bueckers.
Indiana Fever forward Aliyah Boston, New York Liberty forward Breanna Stewart and Fever guard Caitlin Clark round out the top five of fan voting, which closes on June 27.
Wilson has been a dominant force for the Aces in the early part of the season, leading the entire WNBA with 25.6 points and 2.2 blocks per game. The four-time MVP also ranks fifth in rebounding with nine boards per game.
Interestingly enough, Wilson is the only Aces player inside the top ten. The next closest Ace would be center NaLyssa Smith, who ranks 30th in voting with 48,815 votes. Guards Jackie Young (32nd) and Chelsea Gray (37th) are the only other Aces within the top 40.
Fan voting is only the first step in the All-Star selection process, as players and the media will also vote to help decide the starters. From there, the 15 head coaches will vote on the reserves, with the caveat that they cannot vote for their own players. The announcements of the selected players and the construction of the rosters for the games will be decided on a later date.
